Tanzania's President John Magufuli has urged women to stop
taking birth control pills, saying the country needs more people.
"Women can now give up contraceptive methods," Mr
Magufuli said. Mr Magufuli made his comments at a rally on Sunday in the
northern Meatu district, saying people who use family planning methods were
lazy, the local Citizen newspaper quoted him as saying.
"They do not want to work hard to feed a large family.
And that is why they opt for births controls and end up with one or two
children only," he said.
"I have travelled to Europe and elsewhere and have
seen the harmful effects of birth control. Some countries are now facing
declining population growth."
Opposition MP Cecil Mwambe has criticised the comments,
saying they contradicted the country's health policy.
Tanzania has a population of around 53 million people, with
49% of them living on less than $2 (£1.50) a day.
On average, a woman in Tanzania has more than five
children, among the highest rates in the world.
The day after Mr Magufuli's comments, speaker of parliament
Job Ndugai banned female lawmakers from wearing fake nails and eye-lashes in
parliament.
Mr Ndugai told the BBC's Focus on Africa programme that the
ban was because of "health" reasons, without elaborating.
The new regulations also ban women MPs from wearing short
dresses and jeans. Female visitors to parliament will also be expected to
adhere to the dress code.
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